00:00The Dallas Cowboys, a Super Bowl contender, or is it not their night?
00:06Let's talk about it here in Below the Belt, which is brought to you by Window Nation.
00:11The Cowboys enter the draft in desperately into some defense, as we've all covered extensively.
00:17The biggest problem here is that there's not like, it doesn't feel like a super stud draft.
00:21Is this, this is putting you on the spot here, but is this the worst draft in the past five
00:28years for the Cowboys to be in this position?
00:31Is this just typical Cowboy luck that they get two first round picks with this draft class?
00:37Probably, yeah.
00:38Maybe there was a couple years ago that wasn't great, but yeah, this is going to be near the top.
00:44But this is a deep draft, not a star draft?
00:46A lot of these COVID drafts turn out that way.
00:49Like a lot of these COVID era drafts, like for instance, I'm just looking at last year.
00:53Last year, them picking 12 was, yeah, I think that that class was probably a little bit better.
01:00And having two picks, it was a little bit better.
01:032024, yeah, that was a better group.
01:06So yeah, this has been probably the worst since, I think 23 was the one where they picked Mozzie.
01:11That wasn't a great group.
01:12That was one that at the top, a lot of people were just kind of like, eh, what do you
01:16really have here?
01:17Awesome.
01:18Yeah, that's not been the best break for them.
01:20But you could, you could see them making a couple decent moves, finding a couple starters here.
01:27And if they were able to do that, do they just automatically vault to the list of Super Bowl contenders?
01:35Kevin Clark on first take yesterday?
01:37Yes.
01:38You only need to get to average.
01:39I'm not asking, I'm not saying Bain or Down or whatever combination of that.
01:43And then when you get another guy at 20, maybe you get a corner at 20, okay?
01:47So let's take one of those guys, then a corner.
01:49And then you're talking about just getting to 15, 14, 13, something like that.
01:55They don't need to be top five.
01:56They don't need to be top five.
01:57They're going to score so many points.
01:59They have a new D.C., as you mentioned, and Christian Parker.
02:01You just need to be mediocre.
02:02I wake up every day and say, just be mediocre.
02:04And look at me.
02:05I'm thriving.
02:06And so I just think there's something very tangible about both Bain and Downs.
02:12And first of all, Downs, I had Ryan Day on my show last week.
02:14He said that Caleb Downs may have been the best high school player he's ever seen in his entire life.
02:18He could play running back, Day said, in college or in the pros.
02:22That's how athletic he is.
02:24That's how good he is in space.
02:25So, yes, day one, he can play in the NFL and make a difference.
02:29Bain, his motor, his run defense, the ability for him to get to the quarterback,
02:33the fact that he plays so smart.
02:35And I think a lot of times when you play defense, you'll get this.
02:37But a lot of times we don't talk about clutch pass rushers enough.
02:41He knows how to set up a move in the second quarter to get to winning time in the fourth
02:45quarter
02:45and get to the quarterback.
02:46That's going to translate in the NFL.
02:49I like Kevin Clark a lot.
02:50I think Kevin Clark does a really good job.
02:52I think his interviews, he's a really strong interviewer.
02:56He wouldn't have asked Josh Cameron the double-up question, I don't think,
02:59if he had him in front of him.
03:02That feels like a bit of a stretch.
03:04I agree.
03:05I do agree that they need to get to, if you can get them to about average defensively,
03:09their offense is good enough to potentially where they could be one of the better teams
03:12in the league.
03:12I just don't know how realistic it is to say they can get to middle-of-the-pack defense
03:16right away.
03:17Well, they're still, I think this Twitter fight broke out of my timeline yesterday
03:22between a couple of Tolos.
03:24And RJ has brought up a couple of different offensive questions.
03:28Let's just say they have an average defense.
03:30The Dallas Cowboys, since I've been covering them, have still shown a consistent inability
03:38to beat good teams over .500.
03:42I have very little confidence.
03:44Especially on the road.
03:45Yes.
03:46You've talked about road offensive numbers.
03:48And I have very little confidence when you face, and I think Dak is a very good quarterback,
03:53it's a very good offense.
03:55This isn't some foolproof offense to where when you face Brian Flores or the Denver Broncos
04:01or a really good defense that you're going to see, a really good maybe elite defense that
04:07you're going to see come playoff time, that the Dallas Cowboys offense is going to have
04:10that advantage.
04:11So, I still need to see toughness, over .500 wins, doing enough offensive damage against
04:21elite defenses in order to think of you as a Super Bowl contender.
04:25Sorry.
04:26And you can have an average defense to go along with these numbers.
04:29Yeah, but you still got to, like you said, you still got to come to play when you're playing
04:33good teams.
04:33And for whatever reason, they do at home, kind of, kind of, definitely not on the road.
04:41And that's just the reality of it.
04:43I mean, their yards per play at home this year was 6.26, and it was 5.66 on the
04:50road.
04:50How much of that aspect of it that you were just talking about, the toughness or, and you
04:55didn't use this word, I'm just translating some of it here, the meanness or the, like,
05:03just spit and vinegar type of attitude, how much of that is as much of what you want addressed
05:09on the defense as it is the talent deficit?
05:11Like, really just, like, get an edge about the way that you play on that side of the
05:15ball.
05:15Because they don't, even when they've had Mike over there, it's never felt like, oh, man,
05:19they're mean.
05:20They're mean and they hurt people.
05:22Yeah, there's no, there's no.
05:23I always feel intimidated taking on the San Francisco 49ers.
05:26Yeah.
05:27I feel like they're going to get, they're going to get wedgies.
05:29Yeah, you know, and, like, it's one thing to be mean on defense.
05:32There are teams that are mean on offense, too.
05:34Yeah.
05:34But the Cowboys are great on offense.
05:37They're bullies on offense.
05:38But, like, I feel like.
05:40I would, I would disagree with you that they're not mean on offense.
05:44It has been.
05:45I think, I think last year they were a pretty mean offense.
05:49I think, I think you're, you're, you're confusing, like, explosive.
05:55No, I'm talking about mean.
05:57I think they, I think they hurt people on offense last year.
05:59Okay.
06:00Just in general, I mean, I, like, the offensive line was not great consistently.
06:04The offensive line would make you feel the game.
06:07Like, I think last year the offensive line played pretty physical.
06:10I thought Dak was, was playing a little bit more physical last year.
06:14I think Pickens is a physical receiver.
06:16Like, I think, I think they definitely made it difficult.
06:18Yeah.
06:19I just.
06:19Javante.
06:20Yeah.
06:20Javante.
06:20I mean, Javante was, was a tough, imposing runner.
06:24Even when Malik Davis would get out there, he'd generally make you feel a little bit.
06:26But no, to answer your question, they are, I mean, the lack of talent last year on defense
06:32was so embarrassing and so terrible.
06:3770-30.
06:38Like, and usually, you know, that, you can't be mean if you're not talented, in my opinion.
06:43Like, that, like that, the meanness will come with, with dogs that are really, really good.
06:48So, I would go 70-30 talent to meanness, toughness.
06:52Yeah.
06:52And I mean, look, we, you remember we had, it's so funny, Nate Newton, who is, you know.
06:59Mean, was mean.
06:59Nate has joked before with us that when we've had him on, he'll be like, all right, there's
07:04your free one.
07:04Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're, we're, we're, we're paying up next time.
07:07Yep.
07:07So, so Nate values his time.
07:10Nate made sure to tell me when we were in the middle of that year last year, he's like,
07:13I'm coming in your studio next week and I'm going to sit down for an hour and I'm going
07:17to, because this just is on my heart and needs to be talked about, about how they're not tough
07:23enough and they're not mean enough.
07:24And so, like, when it really stands out to a player to where, like, Nate's like, I'm
07:28going to set aside time, I'm going to sit down with you guys and just launch into this
07:31because people got to understand they've got to be better there.
07:35That's, that screams that they have a deficit there.
07:37And I do think when you watch Downs and some of the stuff of him on tape, tough.
07:42I don't know that he's mean, but he's tough.
07:44He's physically tough.
07:45Bain plays mean.
07:46Yeah.
07:46Who are the mean guys?
07:47Bain is mean.
07:49I think Downs is, is really tough.
07:51Colton Hood, I think can play mean sometimes.
07:53And that's a guy that we've talked about the cornerback at Tennessee who potentially could
07:56go at 20.
07:58Delane, not as much.
08:01Styles plays physical.
08:02I don't know that it comes off as like, Reese is mean.
08:04Arvell Reese plays mean.
08:06So you've got some different guys there.
08:08David Bailey is like that.
08:09Some people say David Bailey is a little too mean.
08:11Some of the postgame interactions he's had before, but I like it.
08:14I'll take a little bit of an edge like that.
08:15Any interest in Colts corner Kenny Moore?
08:19He can play the slot.
08:21He can play nickel.
08:22Adam Schefter reports the Colts and Kenny Moore mutually have agreed to seek a trade and a
08:27new home.
08:28Entering the last year of his contract, both sides feel it's time to explore a
08:32deal.
08:32He's 29 probably, something like that.
08:35Yep.
08:35Yeah.
08:36I mean, depending on what the cost is, he's not a bad player.
08:39I'm sorry.
08:39I think he's 32.
08:41Is he that old?
08:41No, he's 30.
08:42He's 30.
08:43So he's 30 right now.
08:44Nobody knows.
08:44He'll be 31 in August.
08:46All right.
08:46This is PFF.
08:48Oh, well then he's definitely 30.
08:50What could this be?
08:51That would be 32 years old.
08:54That's what I thought.
08:55Yeah, they're wrong.
08:56Okay.
08:56Because his birthday is August 23, 1995.
09:00I'm not going to do that math.
09:01That means he'd be 32.
09:03In August, he turns 31.
09:06Yes.
09:06Yes.
09:07You guys turn 31.
09:08Anyway, you know what?
09:10We should just turn this over to analytics since you mentioned PFF.
09:12Let's turn things over to analytics.
09:14Let's let them pick.
09:15A couple weeks ago, Matt Bowen from ESPN talked about the perfect player fits to scheme and
09:22to teams and different things like that.
09:23And Will McClay told us that was very important.
09:25So Matt Bowen had found that the player that he paired with them, and I think he was right,
09:29pick 20, he said, pick for Dallas that fits them, Colton Hood, cornerback from Tennessee.
09:33100% agree with that.
09:34I think that's a strong fit.
09:36Over at NFL.com, they use next-gen stats and other analytic tools to try and figure out
09:42which players that might go in a certain range, given Daniel Jeremiah's rankings, would be a fit at a couple
09:48different picks here.
09:49And who could be just a perfect hand-meat-glove fit?
09:52So the Tennessee Titans, for instance, they've got Jeremiah Love.
09:55For the Cleveland Browns, they put Cardinal Tate.
09:57Kenyon Sadiq, the tight end from Oregon for the Chiefs.
10:01And I was looking around and I was trying to say, all right, who do they say is the best
10:03fit for your Dallas Cowboys?
10:05And they have a fit for the Cowboys at pick 20.
10:08Hey, Cassius Howell, Ed Rusher from Texas A&M, which a few weeks ago, you had asked me when we
10:17were talking about the way they'd cooled on Clowney a little bit
10:20and some things where I said they clearly have some things in mind.
10:22He said, well, who's a guy then in this draft who stands out as not being a fit potentially for
10:28the scheme?
10:28And the first name that came to mind for me was Cassius Howell, Ed Rusher from Texas A&M.
10:34So I don't know how much I trust next-gen stats on this particular instance.
10:37And that's because what?
10:38He is a straight edge rusher.
10:40He is a straight get-to-the-quarterback guy, which is great.
10:42I'd love to have it.
10:43But if Clowney didn't do enough for you and he plays the run, which Cassius Howell does not really,
10:49then I don't know how Cassius Howell would do something for you.
10:51Cassius Howell's arms are shorter than Reuben Bain's.
10:54Dang.
10:54Yeah.
10:55Man, this is like the shortest arm draft I can remember hearing about.
10:57I was just thinking that.
10:58Something about those COVID kids.
11:00Their arms didn't develop.
11:01It's that dinosaur Netflix documentary.
11:05Morgan Freeman.
11:07It's good Netflix stuff.
11:08This is what they write up.
11:09The Cowboys will select twice in the first round.
11:11And while linebacker is the defense's biggest weakness, the pass rush could certainly use some juice.
11:15Jadavion Clowney led the team in pressures.
11:17Dante Fowler led in quick pressures.
11:18And Osa Odigizua led in interior pressures.
11:21All three of them appear to be gone.
11:23With a deep class of edge rushers, Dallas probably can wait until its second first-round pick to address this
11:28need.
11:29Howell will likely be available.
11:30And he could be a serious weapon opposite trade acquisition where Sean Gary, the Texas A&M star, can explode
11:35off the line like almost nobody else in the class.
11:37And he has the agility to get home on a consistent basis, even against effective blocking.
11:41That's all true.
11:42It's just all he does.
11:44I wonder if the hormones they're putting in that we all eat.
11:47Ask RFK.
11:48Well.
11:49Hey, look at everything.
11:50Who wants to do the RFK impression?
11:51The old Tylenol draft class.
11:53Who wants to answer it as RFK?
11:54All the food that's banned in Europe, we eat here.
11:57That's for sure.
11:57I need the best five.
12:01We need to do this short arm study on the best pass rushers who've had the shortest arms or the
12:08highest drafted kids over the past 10 years who failed.
12:11Well, I think we saw that we did the stat.
12:14Nobody with arms under 31 has ever been drafted in the first round.
12:17Is that?
12:17Or it's been like 25 years or something.
12:20Something like that, yeah.
12:20But it makes no sense that all these kids would have short arms.
12:25I think I'm trying to look here.
12:29R. Mason Thomas from Oklahoma, who's a topic, he's 31 and a half, too.
12:33So he's not very long.
12:34It really is a lot of people this draft.
12:36If you look at people who have similar athletic makeup profile, it's nobody who's really, really good.
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